Christianity

Interfaith Peacemakers in Minnesota Remember September 11

September 10, 2002

Source: Star Tribune

On September 10, 2002 the Star Tribune reported on the Minnesota Alliance of Peacemakers (MAP) which, "since 1995, has used nonviolence to promote peace... As the first anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks nears, MAP is finalizing plans for a peace observance at 11:30 a.m. Wednesday in Loring Park in downtown Minneapolis... Its member organizations range from the Minnesota Council of Churches and Minnesota Jews for a Just Peace to Veterans for Peace and Soka Gakkai International-USA/MN, a Buddhist organization."

Court Upholds Ruling: No Sectarian Prayers at Government Agencies

September 10, 2002

Source: The San Francisco Chronicle

On September 10, 2002 The San Francisco Chronicle reported "Government agencies in California can't open their public meetings with sectarian prayers, like those that invoke the name of Jesus Christ, a state appellate court ruled Monday. Such invocations used at the beginning of government meetings violate the constitutional separation of church and state, said the three-panel Court of Appeal in Los Angeles."

9/11 Memorials and Interfaith Services in Southern California

September 9, 2002

Source: Los Angeles Times

On September 9, 2002 the Los Angeles Times reported that "hundreds [of 9/11 memorials] will be held in places of worship and in public places across Southern California in the next few days to mark the Sept. 11 anniversary. The largest inter-religious gathering in Orange County will be A Prayer Service for Peace at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday at St. Columban Church in Garden Grove. Jewish, Islamic and Buddhist leaders will join bishops and other local heads of major Christian denominations for an interfaith service.

Religion and Education Post-9/11: Advocates Switch Sides

September 8, 2002

Source: The San Francisco Chronicle

On September 8, 2002 The San Francisco Chronicle reported that "the Thomas More Law Center, a Michigan-based Christian rights foundation, filed a federal suit this summer on behalf of two families. It charges Contra Costa County's Byron Union School District with violating students' constitutional rights after a seventh-grade class used the workbook Islam: a Simulation of Islamic History and Culture. Religion in the schools has long been a thorny issue. This time, however, some advocates have switched sides....

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Long History of Islam in America

September 8, 2002

Source: In These Times

On September 8, 2002 In These Times, a publication of the Institute for Public Affairs, featured an article entitled "The Forgotten History of Islam in America." The article begins with concerns that "Christian fundamentalists... have seized upon 9/11 to fire a fusillade of invective at the religion of Islam... Far too little media coverage since 9/11 has focused on the country's broader indigenous Islamic constituency. Yet the appeal of Islam in America is undeniable - indeed, it is the country's fastest-growing religion... The...

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Jewish Buddhists Reinterpret Psalms

September 8, 2002

Source: The San Francisco Chronicle

On September 8, 2002 The San Francisco Chronicle reported that "studying the violent passages in the Psalms, Norman Fischer saw something none of us can deny. Judaism and Christianity -- just like the Muslim faith -- can be used to justify the killing of innocents in the name of God. Fischer tries to reconcile all this in Opening to You: Zen-Inspired Translations of the Psalms. Meanwhile, another popular Buddhist teacher with Jewish roots and a Bay Area address is out with his own book of interfaith inspiration...

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Archdiocese of Boston's Brighton Headquarters to House Menorah

September 7, 2002

Source: The Boston Herald

On September 7, 2002 The Boston Herald reported that "a newcomer... on the grounds of the Archdiocese of Boston's Brighton headquarters - a menorah honoring victims of the Holocaust - is scheduled to be placed in a grassy corner between the main chancery office building and a library next week. The project is the brainchild of Gunther Lawrence, a New Yorker active in Reform Judaism and interreligious affairs."

Church Attendance Returns to Pre-9/11 Figures

September 7, 2002

Source: Deseret News

On September 7, 2002 Deseret News reported that "last year... Church attendance soared in weeks [subsequent to 9/11 attacks]... But time has left many churches with much the same attendance they had pre-Sept. 11, according to national surveys."

Reverend Criticized for Inclusive View

September 7, 2002

Source: Los Angeles Times

On September 7, 2002 the Los Angeles Times reported that "the Rev. Carlton Pearson, Grammy-nominated singer and high-profile pastor of Higher Dimensions Family Church in Tulsa, Okla., is under fire from fellow evangelicals for teaching that most everyone will be saved, even those who do not accept Jesus Christ."

Interfaith Understanding Goal of Many 9/11 Memorial Events

September 6, 2002

Source: The San Diego Union-Tribune

On September 6, 2002 The San Diego Union-Tribune reported that on September 11, 2002, "bells will toll, prayers will be uttered and the names of some of the more than 3,000 killed will be recited at houses of worship and interfaith community gatherings across the country. It will be a time for those across and beyond the religious realm to remember, each in his or her own way... A number of religious groups, including the Council on American-Islamic Relations and the National Council of Churches, have laid out very...

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Jews Hail New Document that Strengthen Christian-Jewish Relations

September 6, 2002

Source: The Boston Herald

On September 6, 2002 The Boston Herald reported that "two years after Jewish scholars issued a historic document that called on Jews to reexamine their understanding of Christianity, a group of leading Christian scholars issued a response yesterday, saying that teaching contempt for Judaism 'dishonors God.' Jewish leaders hailed the document as an important step in counteracting a resurgence in anti-Semitism coinciding with the conflict in the Middle East. Its overarching theme is that ancient rivalries should not define...

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Jews Hail New Document that Strengthen Christian-Jewish Relations

September 6, 2002

Source: The Boston Globe

On September 6, 2002, The Boston Globe reported that "a prominent group of Protestant and Roman Catholic scholars, in a major boost to Christian-Jewish relations, yesterday declared that Jews, like Christians, have a covenant with God and that a belief in the divinity of Jesus is not necessary for salvation. As a result, the group denounced 'missionary efforts directed at converting Jews.' One of the authors of the statement, which...

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Cathedral of Our Lady of Angels to Open in Los Angeles

September 4, 2002

Source: Los Angeles Times

On September 4, 2002 the Los Angeles Times reported that "for [Cardinal Roger M. Mahony] and many others, Monday's cathedral dedication will be a celebration of the living church and the 5 million Roman Catholics who constitute Southern California's largest religious group. It is a church revived and enriched by immigrants and challenged by the need to accommodate more than 50 cultures and languages. More than 80% of the archdiocese's Catholics are Latino and Asian--and Asian Catholics now outnumber whites, according to...

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Photo Exhibit: Freedom and Fear: Bay Area Muslims after September 11, 2001

September 3, 2002

Source: Mercury News

http://www.bayarea.com/mld/mercurynews/news/local/3991558.htm

On September 3, 2002 Mercury News reported on "a month-long photo exhibit that opened Sunday at San Francisco [California] City Hall, called 'Freedom and Fear: Bay Area Muslims after September 11, 2001,' [photographed by documentary photographer Rick Rocamora, a Roman Catholic-raised Filipino immigrant]. The exhibit captures Ashan Syed of the Muslim Community Association in San...

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